Power
by NarcissisticRiceBall
Summary: PreBefore Crisis. How Player A, usually called Rod, becomes a Turk curtesy of Reno. Simple oneshot expanding on a small official background detail. You may be good, but I'm better.


**A/N:** Alrighty, this is just a little oneshot I was inspired to write. I don't know why I had this inspiration. I don't even remember when it came to me. This takes place I guess pre-Before Crisis. If anybody has done a little research, they know that Player A, who uses a nightstick or rod, is almost universally named Rod or Rodney...Creative, no? Ayways, I stuck with that name as most people should be familiar with it. So, this is basically my idea of how Rodney was recruited into the Turks. The official story is that he tried to steal a motorcycle and got caught by Reno. Veld decided his skills were useful and had himjoin the Turks. That's about as much detail as they get, so I expanded on it and wrote this. I hope everybody enjoys!

I don't own Final Fantasy VII in any form, yo.

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Silence filled the empty hallway. Shadows lined the floor in odd patterns from the objects in the area and the poor lighting. Everything was still save for one shadow that was softly moving from one pool of darkness to the other. It paused suddenly upon hearing sounds of footsteps and laughter.

"No way! She couldn't have gone out with you."

"I'm telling you, man, she was totally all over me."

Two uniformed individuals walked casually down the hallway. The guards appeared to be oblivious to the shadow pressing against the wall. They would have walked right by were it not for one of the guards tripping and looking directly at the wall. It took a few moments for the fallen man to register what was happening. His comrade stared at the same spot and had a faster reaction.

Before he could open his mouth, the shadow lashed out with a swift kick to the guard's head instantly knocking him out. The second guard jumped up and made a move for the now grinning shadow but was stopped when the mysterious individual quickly slipped behind and hit him soundly behind the head at the sensitive pressure point and knocked him out.

"Too easy…"

The shadow grinned triumphantly. Without a second glance, the dark form continued to snake its way around the lights and stayed within the shadows. When the shadow reached the end of the hallway, it paused. Standing in front of the door was another pair of guards. Like the previous ones, they were not paying attention to anything and that remained the case as they were promptly knocked out before either of them knew anybody was attacking them.

They slumped limply to the floor allowing the shadow to quietly open the door and step inside the room. After entering the room, the shadow shut the door and locked it. The room was dark, only the faint outlines of large objects could be seen. Groping against the wall, the shadow found the light panel. Flicking on the switches, the lights buzzed to life.

The newly lit room revealed the shadow to be a young man dressed in faded and worn street clothes. His short brown hair hung loosely in his face while the rest was an unkempt mess sticking out in multiple directions. It was obvious this was some street punk, but apparently, he was not an ordinary one. He had a black leather jacket with a red design faded on the back. It was the symbol of his gang.

"Nice. I am too good."

He mumbled to himself as he eagerly examined the objects before him. The room was filled with vehicles and many of which were motorcycles. The young man had seen many motorcycles in life and owned most of them. However, these were different. Everything about them was new and top of the line. He wondered to himself if anybody in the company knew how to really ride one of these things. Walking up and down the rows, his hand running lightly along each one, he finally paused in front of one of the bikes.

He kneeled down to get a better look at it. The motorcycle was ebony black and shone brightly in the lighting. The design was one of the most unique styles he had ever seen. Circling the bike, the youth could tell it was fast. It had power and lots of it. This was the one. Not even bothering to look at the rest, he quickly pulled out a few small objects from his jacket and began attempting to disable the alarm.

After patiently picking around, the young man became frustrated yet excited all the same. The alarm was not going to be disabled that simply. After that, he figured that trying to hotwire the thing would be fairly difficult as well. However frustrating it was that he could not accomplish it as fast as he normally did, he still felt exhilaration at the thought of freeing the motorcycle and riding away with it. After this stunt, he would be the undisputed leader, a legend.

"You're pretty good, yo."

The young man froze in place. He was currently kneeling on the ground. There was somebody in there with him. Not only that, this person was literally right behind him. The stranger's head was practically resting on the young man's shoulder. He was shocked. His senses were impeccable. There was no way somebody could have snuck up on him without him at least hearing or noticing something. But apparently, there was somebody.

The young man turned his head and came face to face with another young man. They stared at each other for a few seconds before the youth jumped away from the stranger. He quickly took up a defensive stance. His eyes warily watched as the newcomer slowly stood up and stretched lazily like a cat. Now that they were some distance apart, the young man could take in this intruder. To say the least, he was no impressed.

This stranger stood casually with a slouch and the laziest, smug expression. All of it screamed that he did not care about anything and could care less if anybody thought less of him for it. Even the way he blinked seemed to be lazy.

"You may be good…But you're not that good, yo."

He smirked at the young man who felt the anger rise within. Normally, he would have brushed such a comment aside and leveled the person who dared insult him, however, something held him back. While his opponent appeared to be carefree about the situation, there was something about him that made the young man feel edgy. Not only that, the way he talked, the way he mockingly commended and insulted, even the odd manner he used to end his sentences made the youth furious.

"Says who?"

"Says me, yo…So, what's your name, brat?"

The young man bristled at how the other referred to him as though he were some spoiled child. He wondered who this individual was. At first, he thought he was another guard, but the way he was able to move without detection would imply otherwise. However, the youth could not figure out where this other man belonged. He wore a suit that seemed to be at least one size to big and hung loosely on his lanky frame. The white shirt underneath was un-tucked and the shirttail hung below his jacket that was opened and just as messy as everything else.

"What? Cat got your tongue, kiddo?"

Somehow, this new guy seemed to be able to say just the right things to irk the young man the wrong way. He tried his hardest to keep his cool. He was still sure he had the advantage. Back on the streets, he was one of the best fighters in multiple sectors and was even a leader of one of the most notorious gangs. However, there was still that feeling that he could not take his opponent lightly.

"Shut the hell up."

"Sheesh, not very good in the social department, are ya?"

He watched as the other individual ran a hand through wild red hair. It matched perfectly with the unkempt outfit. It was held out of his face by a pair of biker goggles. The young man quickly wondered if this other guy rode one of these things. He suddenly imagined him riding the object that he desired. The thought of somebody else riding the motorcycle angered him further. Little did he know, the anger was quite tell tale and the other grew more smug by the minute.

"…Rodney…"

"Rodney?…Heh, cute name, yo."

The rational part of his mind told him that this man was purposely trying to get a rise out of him. The instinct however, told him to beat him senseless. It was growing increasingly more difficult to keep the second voice in check.

"Aren't ya gonna tell me yours?"

"Hey, I'm flattered, yo. The name's Reno."

"Reno, huh? What kind of name is that?"

"I dunno. Not like I had a choice in the matter, yo."

The individual called Reno shrugged careless and continued to lazily stare at the young man. Rodney locked eyes and noticed the red slash under each blue eye. He found it difficult to stare Reno down. He looked like he could fall asleep right there, but watching his eyes, Rodney understood that this person missed nothing. It was almost as if he could read him like a boldfaced book.

"Admiring my eyes?"

Reno fluttered his eyelids mimicking a coquettish girl. Rodney growled at the continual string of insults. What was it about this person that could crawl under his skin?

"I see you have your sights set on this beauty…You would not believe how smooth she rides. Not to mention the raw power this baby can put out, yo."

He waltzed casually up to the motorcycle and leaned against the seat while running his hand along the handlebars. To rub salt in the wound, Reno was now boasting about how he enjoyed the prize that Rodney decided was his and his alone. The anger etched into his features was clear as day and it seemed to be the exact reaction Reno wanted.

"Hmm, looks like I hit a sore spot, yo."

The redhead smirked at Rodney. This time, there was definitely a challenge behind it. He slowly pushed himself off the bike he was leaning against and walked away from it so that he was standing straight across from Rodney.

"Gonna do something about it?"

That was all he needed. In a flash Rodney tensed and lunged at the redhead slouching in front of him. His speed was incredible. There was no way this guy was going to insult him and live. However, before he could even get close, Reno seemed to disappear out of his field of vision. Before he could register that somebody was behind him, Rodney felt himself roughly pushed As he fell to the floor he twisted his body and used his hand as a pivot to turn around and face the attacker.

"Wow, you're slow, yo."

Rodney never thought he would hear those words from anybody. It was a well-known fact that he was the fastest person around. Nobody around the streets could match his speed. It was one of the reasons he was such a great fighter. He could get hits in before his opponent could even react. Now, he was in their position.

"Hope you can do better. That was just pathetic, yo."

Where had he heard those words before? Rodney contemplated his opponent while recalling those words. It suddenly hit him full force. How many times had he told his defeated opponents that very same thing? He recalled how he watched them on the ground helpless and disgusted at their weakness. Now, there he was in that very same position.

Reno watched with mild curiosity as a myriad of emotions flashed across his opponent's face. Apparently, he hit the right spot. He patiently waited for the young man to get back up and attack him again. Just as he predicted, there was suddenly a flurry of punches and kicks aimed at him. He easily dodged each one. Reno had to admit that this was one of the fastest people he had ever fought. With a little more formal training, there might be a chance.

"Good. Keep it up. Faster. Move faster. Guard your head."

As the words left his mouth, Reno deftly moved between the furious onslaught of attacks and soundly sideswiped Rodney in the head sending him reeling to the side. Again, Rodney had to maneuver his body so as to land on his feet.

"Still too slow, yo. Not only that, your attacks are too weak."

Weak? He was too weak? Those were thoughts that never crossed his mind. He was supposed to be the one in power. He was the one who was supposed to be toying around. Rodney could not believe it. He wondered who this person was. He wondered who was so much better than him. This was not how it is supposed to be.

"Damn you!"

In a rage, he lunged once again at Reno who calmly sidestepped and swung his leg out in a lightening fast movement that sent Rodney reeling the opposite direction. Rodney picked himself off the ground and glared at the redhead who innocently quirked his head to the side.

"What?…Don't tell me you're giving up already? Your the leader of that gang, aren't ya? Huh, wonder how you got into that position? It could not have been for your skills, yo…Maybe you got it by looks?"

This guy was just too much for Rodney. Everything about him grated against his nerves and pride. His sloppy clothing, the wild hair, the lazy posture, those eyes that took in everything, and the power he held over him. In a wild frenzy, he lashed out at Reno again who just smirked some more.

"Die!"

He pushed himself as fast as he could. Never before had he moved with such speed. There was no way anybody was getting out of the way in time. Not even Reno.

"I don't feel like it, yo."

Beyond his comprehension, Rodney suddenly felt himself on the floor and unable to move. He was lying on his stomach. He managed to look up out the corner of his eye. Standing lazily over him was Reno who now held a nightstick of some sort and had it resting casually on his shoulder. This was definitely not a position he wanted to be in. He was supposed to be the one on top. Why was he not the one looking down?

"Comfy? I hope so 'cause you're gonna be a there for a little while, yo."

"D-damn…y-you…"

Reno squatted down so he was able to look Rodney in the face better. He blinked a couple of times and grinned.

"Still got some life in ya? Good. Ya know, the ShinRa company does look down on those who steal things from them, yo."

"They…can do…what…they want…Heh…I guarantee…I will…make hell…before I go…"

There was no way he was going down without some dignity. If they decided to bring him down, he would make it the most miserable time they had. Rodney was shocked though when he witnessed Reno's reaction.

"Great! That's what I wanted to hear, yo…So, whatcha think, Commander?"

Rodney's eyes widened when he heard Reno refer to another person. He now understood what just happened. Nobody was called commander within ShinRa except for the head of the Turks. Reno was answering to Veld of the Turks. Reno was a Turk. He just got in a fight with a highly trained operative of the company. They were the true shadows that people feared.

"Hmm, you're right, he's got a lot of talent…Not to mention a fiery spirit."

He strained to turn his head so he could see the other person. However, when he tried, it felt like everything weighed a ton and he had no control. He heard shoes click against the cement floor as somebody made their way around him. Soon, the infamous commander was in his line of vision.

Veld cut an intimidating figure. He had black hair and dark eyes that commanded respect. He stared long and hard at Rodney. The young man would have cringed if he were capable of moving his body.

"So, Rodney, want to become stronger? Do you want to be pushed to excel and reach your potential? It's there. You have what it takes to be at the top of the food chain. The question is, do you want it enough?"

His eye flickered from Veld to Reno who was standing lazily to the side twirling his nightstick playfully. The sight of him so relaxed without a care in the world was enough to drive Rodney up the wall. Without even trying, he beat him into submission. As long as he remained how he was, this Reno character would always be ahead of him. That was unacceptable. He was the one destined to be at the top. He wanted to go beyond Reno. He wanted to be Veld. The desire burned all the stronger within him. Now, he had true conviction as to what he wanted with power.

"Yes…I'll…be…the strongest…"

"Very well then. Reno, I leave the rest to you."

"Yes, sir."

Rodney heard the commander walk out of the room once again leaving the two of them alone. Reno stood next to the prone man on the floor for a few seconds before plopping himself onto the floor. He smirked as he looked off into the distance.

"Looks like Commander Veld enjoyed our little fight, yo."

He would hardly call it a fight. It was an embarrassing beat down. However, the part about Veld interested him. Rodney looked questioningly at Reno who explained what he meant.

"Didn't ya know? The commander was here the whole time. I entered with him, yo…You didn't notice?…Huh, guess we gotta work on your perception, yo."

It was bad enough that one person snuck up on him, but knowing there was a second was even worse. He was never once aware of a third person watching him. So then, he concluded that they were testing him.

"What?…Lemme guess, you're wondering when we saw ya, right?…Well, I was watching your handiwork as you broke in. I'd been following you since then. I texted the commander and he agreed to let me deal with you, yo."

Rodney could not believe what he just heard. He had been followed since the very beginning? He distinctly remembered checking behind him constantly and never once noticed anything out of the normal. Reno appeared to have surprises stashed endlessly up his sleeve.

"Don't look like that, Rod…You're just an amateur. Believe it or not, I'm a professional, yo…So, what weapon do you want to master?"

"W-weapon?"

"Yeah, ya know, a specialty, yo."

His eye's gaze shifted from Reno to the nightstick that he was currently spinning around.

"What? This? It's called an Electro-Mag Rod…Ha, that's funny, yo."

Not only was this Reno professional skilled in countless fields, but he was also a bit of an idiot. However, Rodney wondered how many people fell into the trap of underestimating him and paid for it with their lives.

"That…I want that…"

"Funny how every newbie gets zapped by this thing and they want to learn how to use it, yo. Ya know, that's why I picked it up."

Reno smirked and stood up. He flicked his wrist causing the nightstick to collapse within itself. Each section fell into the next until it was only a handle's length. With dexterity, he deftly latched it onto his belt a little ways inside his jacket. Rodney figured out why he was unable to detect the presence of a weapon. His jacket hid the EMR hanging at his hip. As his jacket fell into place, Rodney also noticed a gun. It suddenly hit him harder than ever before. Reno really had been messing with him.

"You'll specialize in the rod, but you'll have to also know how to fire a gun with decent accuracy, yo."

The redhead leaned over and flicked his wrist again. He literally did have surprises up his sleeves. A regular business was suddenly extended forward. Reno grinned lopsidedly.

"Oops, guess ya can't take it…I'll leave it here, yo. Whenever ya can move again, just come on up to the sixty-fifth floor and tell 'em you're the new rookie, yo."

Rodney managed with a great amount of effort to look at the card Reno left on the ground. It was solid white and had barely anything written on it.

_Administrative Research Department _

_Reno_

That was the only thing written on the card. The upper left hand corner bore a small, embossed ShinRa logo. Other than that, the card was blank. Rodney decided it matched the Turks perfectly, black and white, clear cut and to the point. He looked for Reno again who was walking away. He made a grunting noise to get the redhead's attention.

"Yeah? Oh right, you'll be up and fine in a little while…Maybe an hour, maybe less if you're good, yo."

Again, there was that same insulting tone that prodded him to do better. Rodney took it in and added it to the smoldering flame inside that was his desire to be better than all of them. He smirked triumphantly at Reno who smirked right on back and continued on his way.

"Welcome to the Turks."

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**A/N:** So did you like it? By the way, the emphasis on speed was a biggie for me. In Before Crisis, Reno is known as the fastest of the Turks and his build could easily indicate as such. Rod is similar to Reno except he's a rookie and Reno isn't. Obivously, Reno has more skill than he does otherwise he wouldn't have been able to catch Rodney. Also, the way they speak is a little odd, particularly Reno. They both use very plain form of Japanese which is not the polite way most people talk. It's rougher so I don't have them talk all that nicely in english. Also, I have Reno end certain sentences with "yo." Note, this is not a real translation of what he actually says. He uses "dazo, to" or just "to" depending on the grammar. Either way, it makes no sense. It's something solely unique to Reno. There is no english equivalent. But, most people use "yo" to get across the point that Reno talks differently and doesn't make much sense by adding that on. Yeah, so there are my explanations. I sincerely hope you enjoyed reading this. I really enjoyed writing it. Happy readings!


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